What to Look for in an IAM Solution

Get Smarter Restrictions: User-Empowered Identity

Digital identities need to be protected and who better than individual users to identify suspicious account activity? Premium IAM solutions now offer users with real-time notifications when suspicious events occur and empower users to perform immediate and appropriate responses.

For instance, if an attacker were to attempt to log in with a user's identity from a different country, the user would be presented with a security notification in the browser or via an SMS text message instead of an operations team being alerted, as they may not be aware of the individual's location. The user can then issue a response to disable the account or immediately change a password. This gives companies a higher level of assurance that their data and user accounts are protected.

A study conducted by Intermedia last year found that the average employee relies on 13 different web applications at work, each requiring a different password. It also found that 89 percent of working adults retained access (i.e., a valid login and password) to at least one application from a former employer. More concerning, 45 percent retained access to "confidential" or "highly confidential" data, and 49 percent logged into an account after leaving the company.

With these realities in mind, identity and access management (IAM) software is increasingly necessary for businesses of every size to combat potential data breaches to data and IT systems. IAM is not only about single sign-on (SSO): A range of new and advanced capabilities greatly increase security while improving employees' productivity. In this slideshow, Intermedia highlights the top five features business should look for in an IAM solution.